Zanzibar Cafe

Address: 1164 Stelly’s X Road
Phone: (250) 544-1475 or (250) 652-1228
Website: http://www.zanzibarcafe.ca/
Price: $5-13 lunch, $5-25 dinner
Notes: Gorgeous patio, nice range of menu, lush location.

On a whim one sunny Saturday morning we made a very-legal two-point turn and decided to brunch at the Zanzibar Cafe just outside of Brentwood Bay. The sign outside says "Global Flavours. Local Taste." They were gracious enough to let us pick a spot on the patio in sight of our dog who hung out in the luscious garden while we ate, so they had our business. 

It was a bit hard to tell what we were walking in to - it could have gone either way looking at the outside but once we walked inside we couldn't stop gushing. The patio is huge, and wraps around the majority of the building. The inside is all sky-lights and fairy-lights and wooden beams. Trees and vines around the property mean on a sunny day the shadows play across the inside and the outside. The summer day we first visited was so lovely, and the ambiance so perfect that it felt like we were transported away on holiday without even leaving the island. 

We were lucky enough to be sitting next to two men having some kind of business meeting, and one of them knew the chef, so I have a bit of background info. He grew up in Morocco with both middle-eastern and French influence, emigrated to England where he trained under an Italian chef. All of these are reflected in the cuisine available on the menu - and that they are done well. We will be back for dinner!



Service:
August 13, 2011
The service was pretty good - a bit on the slow side but we were in no rush and they were clearly busy. Super friendly staff, very professional and courteous.

Food:
August 13, 2011
We started off with two Americanos. 2% Jazz coffee, in fact! It was pretty tasty although perhaps a tad on the burnt side. 

Mulligatawny Soup via foodspotting.com

I'd never tasted mulligatawny soup before, but it's my new favourite! This was described as an "english style" - a bit thicker, creamier I think although as I say, it's my first taste. Savoury Indian/curry spices were perfect. The bread was a little weird - it was dense but I was expecting it to be either a bit softer or a bit crunchier. It more felt like it had been cut and left to the air for a bit too long... whether or not this is true, pushing it either side would have fixed that. 

Yam Soup via foodspotting.com

This soup was also delicious - nicely seasoned, perfect texture. Nothing to write home about because yam is a pretty boring soup, but a very Nice boring soup none-the-less! It was a special, so it's allowed not to be the best thing I've ever had in my life. 

1/4 Falafel Plate via foodspotting.com

This is a 1/4 of the plate - we were pretty full from our breakfast earlier so we got them to split the 1/2 for us. An incredibly fresh greek salad without too many overpowering flavours, really nice pita bread and really tasty tzatziki. The falafel was probably the weakest part - some of the patties were alright but others were way, way too dry to be appetizing (hard, even). Unfortunate because it really should have stood out a bit more!